Dehradun, student activist group, Making a Difference by Being the Difference (MAD) lashed out at the State Government for hollow promises on Rispana rejuvenation.
Highlighting the fact that not an inch has moved to rejuvenate Rispana since July, the students said that senseless pollution of natural resources was unacceptable to them. The group has announced that it plans to start cleaning small stretches of the river on its own. A hundred member clean-up will take place on Sunday in Deepnagar, one of the worst stretches of the river.
For the past seven years, MAD has been campaigning for the rejuvenation of Rispana and Bindal rivers. The activist group was instrumental in getting sanction from the National Institute of Hydrology, Roorkee which stated that Rispana showed signs of revival in 2014. Following which the Union of India declared the two rivers part of Ganga basin and marked a copy of the same to MAD in 2016.
When the State Government accepted MAD’s petition to work on Rispana rejuvenation and involved them for the planning of the same, the group claimed that they did not know that their efforts would cease post 2018 July plantation. Instead when the High Court asked the State to clear river beds, the State came forward with an anti-environment ordinance. The move has not gone unnoticed by nature lovers.
Pointing out how earlier this year the Chief Minister had publicly remarked that MAD was responsible in bringing Rispana’s renewed future up-close to city residents, MAD members stated though monthly meetings were convened on Rispana’s rejuvenation by senior bureaucrats with all departments in attendance.
Today too MAD wants to take concrete steps such as river cleaning, tapping of drains, recharge of springs, further hydrological inputs, implementation of the NIH Report Amidst.
In late November 2018, when MAD members inspected the plantation which were carried out in July, it was found that areas near Tapobhoomi Ashram were barren.
MAD member Gayatri whose message on Rispana was echoed on Prime Minister’s Mann ki Baat felt that despite the Prime Minister’s appeal the State government had not moved with the right intent to tackle the issue.
MAD now hopes that it’s renewed movement will wake the Government out of its slumber. Members also appealed to Dehradun residents to actively join efforts to rejuvenate Rispana.
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